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September 7, 2016August 30, 2016

All the World for Allah vs The Kingdom of God (1 of 2)

UI – Part 390 – All the World for Allah vs The Kingdom of God (1 of 2)

All for Allah

Islam preaches that all the world is to be composed of naught but Muslims, devout Muslims. The infidel, the non-believer, is to be eradicated or reduced to a slave, sexual or servant, and the non-devout Muslim considered a heretic also extirpated. In such a world all would practice Islam, the 5 pillars, and wholly accept Sharia Law as the constitution, the world and each nation. Theocracy would be the defined governmental structure. Islamic police would walk the streets to insure female children are not at play or being educated and that adult women are properly covered, accompanied by a man, and in no way seductive to men. The black burka would be commonplace. Women would serve their men and make babies. They would tend to their homes and be ready when their husband calls to have sex. Love may or may not be present in their relationship. They would be segregated in their house of worship. The unmarried is to remain celibate although the male may find a sex slave as an outlet for their sex drive until the day they are assigned a female to marry, as well as after. Women would await their assignment to a Muslim for marriage, age not an imperative for the male, nor love in a relationship, and that could happen soon after the girl reached puberty. The afterlife would be foremost in everyone’s mind (that is the Muslim). This is the All for Allah world.

There would be no borders. A Caliph, a king or a Muslim pope, as it were, would provide the religious platform for all to adhere to. Judge, jury, religious leader would all be the same. Lawyers and Imam’s would provide judgment and prescribe punishment. Following the dictates of the Quran, the chosen Hadiths and practices of the self-proclaimed prophet, Muhammad, would be required and no doubt as to their ideological foundation would be allowed. Leaders in government would be advised daily by their religious, an Imam, counter-part.

The Kingdom of God

God foretells in the Bible of a kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. There is to be peace on earth. Jesus Christ came as a human to earth to show humans a relationship with God is possible. Referred to as Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father and Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9.6) he was to establish his kingdom and uphold it with justice and righteousness. All humans would be considered equal, male and female, jew, gentile, to include pagan and Arab, black, white and yellow, all ethnicities, rich and poor, strong and weak, the healthy and the sick. Of peace there will be no end (Isaiah 9.7). Christ came to fill the law and make the sinner, that is all humans, right anew with God. He came to take the punishment we all deserve for our transgressions. It is a gift to everyone. Accept the gift and repent and the mystery of the gospel is no more. He calls for us all to “Watch and pray so that we avoid temptations. As the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak” (Mark 14.38).

God calls people to the kingdom. Thru Jesus, God made the kingdom available to those who, accepting his sacrifice, are thankful and repent. They then live according to the example of Jesus. It is the gospel, the good news of the saving grace of Jesus Christ. Judgment remains God’s alone. We are joint heirs to the kingdom of God, a culture formed by those gathered together in praise and thanksgiving for the Lord. We are loved and are purposed to do good, caring for the poor and the needy without regard for ethnicity or color, and sharing the love enjoyed as children of God. The church keeps its congregation aware of their moral and social responsibilities, to those of the church, but also to those who are neighbors. It is as a society within the kingdom, not of the world. The kingdom is present where he (Jesus) is and he is present when two or more are gathered in his name (Matthew 18:20). As Russell Moore wrote, in his book Onward, “The church is an organism, the flesh and blood of Jesus, with a head in heaven and a body on earth.” He also wrote, “The goal of the kingdom is the merger of heaven and earth — when the dwelling place of God transforms creation.”

Area of Agreement

Where Christians may agree with Muslims is that the world system (temporal) is at odds with the kingdom. That which is globally adopted, filled with temptations to which many succumb and consider acceptable, as it is permitted in the society and culture in which they live, is at odds with their ideology or faith.

The worldwide accepted view as currently perceived is at odds with the ideology of Islam as expressed in the Quran and Islamic Law. It is at odds with Biblical directives. What differs is important. For those who consider themselves part of the world, not convicted in their faith (think atheists), the plan for the future differs, and the approach to life today differs. For those of faith that claim salvation and personal morality a goal, the temporal world can be and has become politically problematic. For the Christian they may express their differences and desires, whereas the devout Muslim wants to impose their differences and desires, having them forced upon society. Ayaan Hirsi Ali, her book Heretic, refers to the latter as Islam “commanding right and forbidding wrong.” The objective of the church must be the protection of the gospel, insuring the gospel is never diluted. Christians cannot be afraid to be out of sync with their society, and their society should not condemn them for thinking differently. Their moral posture is not to be lauded over but used as an example, as an example of Jesus within them. Christians are not at war with the adverse culture as are Muslims. Muslims, the devout, insist the road only be the Islamic one. They also proclaim that this life is not the life they seek, but the life hereafter. Christians would also like to see the culture change and be more God oriented, but it is not to be a contentious struggle, more by example and an appeal for what is rational, truth, and makes sense.

The temporal world functions best with secularism because in a secular state there is no place for divine laws, and secular laws are unacceptable to Islam. Secular laws look at the whole of society and are structured to accommodate everyone. Also it is believed that in Islam religion and politics cannot be separated. That is not the case for the Christian as clearly stated, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s” (Luke 20:25).

The Approach

Christians can live in the temporal world and not insist that a theocracy be imposed. Muslims cannot. The problem is this. No wall can be built wide enough, high enough or long enough to keep out the pleasures offered by Satan. The desires of man are inherent. They exist inside the human. We all sin. “Just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned” (Romans 5:12). So living in a world that is temporal will always be the case. Minimizing temptations will be a vain effort (1 John 1:8). The heart of man can only be changed by God. That is the gift God provided. That is the gospel. Jesus came to incur God’s wrath deserved by us all as we sin. So punished, Jesus as our substitute, we are made anew when we believe in Christ’s sacrifice and repent. We are thus saved and reborn spiritually. We are then equipped to deal with the temporal world on our own. If there was to be no temptation God would have eliminated it and dealt with Satan directly, but the battle continues. The promise has been made. Christ has overcome sin, for those who believe, as well as spiritual death caused by disobedience to God when Christ rose from the dead. Believers have been made right with God through faith. It is a gift, God’s gift. The church is the sanctuary for those who believe. In it they can experience the kingdom of God.

Part two of this article to follow in a few days.

Grace and Peace

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